Tara Lightfoot on Life, Music, and A Brilliant Lie

A Brilliant Lie is a hard-working, punk-leaning rock band out of Orlando, Florida, that will rock your entire face off. Frontwoman Tara Lightfoot is an explosive vocalist and a mesmerizing ball of energy on stage. The band is currently on tour, so I was delighted that Lightfoot carved out some time to answer a few questions about working for a career in music, life on tour, and her inspirations. If you’re in South Carolina, don’t miss A Brilliant Lie on Wednesday at New Brookland Tavern.

Where are you from? Where are you now?
I am from a small town near Daytona Beach called Barberville.  But I’ve been settled in Orlando for almost 10 years now.
Tell me about the music you make.
I am extremely lucky to get to make music with some of my best buds in A Brilliant Lie.  Honestly, between the group of us, there are all sorts of genres and musical moods floating around.  Somehow, we grab all of it out of the air, and smack it together into some high-energy rock music.
Does living in the South impact your music? How?
Hmm, that is an interesting question!  I, like many of the guys in ABL, go out of my way to find new music from all corners of the globe.  That is one of the benefits of the internet, I suppose . . . your options for music are limitless.  But, I grew up in a rural area.  I can definitely think of a few songs we have that are impacted by that.  Some lyrics came to fruition by sitting in a dark field and looking at the stars. You don’t always get that sort of setting in the city.  The South has a vibe about it, that’s for sure.

How do your family and job affect your musicmaking?
Both create a huge impact.  My immediate family has been supportive of my music since I was a dumb, blue-haired 15-year-old kid in a punk band.  My job is fantastically supportive, as well.  I can actually work remotely while we tour, which is a blessing (a lot of work . . . but a blessing).  And my husband, of course, is in the band . . . so . . . we definitely support each other.  It’s a relief to be able to relate so strongly with him in that realm.
What are your hopes for your music?
Man.  I guess everyone in our shoes hopes to eventually make this the full-time gig, and be able to survive on touring and selling our CDs/merchandise.  But, another immediate goal for us is just to REACH people.  Despite the aforementioned comment about the internet making music options limitless . . . it ALSO makes it oversaturated.  Bands used to be able to make music, go play gigs, and people would attend.  They’d share mix tapes.  Audiences made an effort to share.  Now, you can stream your favorite bands to your phone instantly.  You can download a movie that’s still in theaters and watch it in the comfort of your living room.  There are a billion Pokemon to be caught!  No one has to even try to be entertained anymore.  So why would anyone go to a concert to listen to a bunch of bands they’ve never heard of?  And online, social media platforms make it borderline impossible for people to even see your band’s posts.  It’s all about paying for posts, and breaking algorithms.  It’s . . . man . . . it’s crazy.  So yeah, our goal is to make enough of a buzz that it inspires people to go back to the basics of connecting to music and bands again, and, hopefully, attaching themselves to the music we write in the process.  There’s nothing better than having an audience member come up to us after a show and express that a song we wrote (that WE wrote) changed their life or got them through a tough time.  It’s mind-blowing, and humbling, and addictive.  Finally, after trying so hard to make music and say SO much, and usually feeling like it’s all in vain, someone got it.  And that makes it worth it.  Weird, right?

Where will you go and what will you do next?
Where will we go?  We’re in that “pounding the pavement” stage with our latest EP.  We’re adamant to go out and show people what we can do.  So the current (and next) step is to keep playing, keep pushing, keep giving high fives.
Where are you headed on tour?
We are excited to be visiting a number of cities on this run.   We began in Dallas with our new friends in Pseudo Future.  As I type, we are wrapping up Week #1 and heading back to FL to play a few dates (including our EP Release Party – woo!).  Then we head back up north for the remainder of August.
Who do you listen to?
I listen to a wide variety of artists.  I am enamored with the sound and science of the human voice, so I find myself drawn to artists who use that as a base instrument (i.e., Son Lux, My Brightest Diamond, Austra, etc).  But as far as rock bands, I love At The Drive-In, AFI, Mewithoutyou . . . anyone who can marry melody and raw emotions properly is a winner in my book.
Who inspires you?
Personally, my parents.  They are never anything but kind, and they keep their heads up high when things get tough.  Musically, the rest of A Brilliant Lie inspires me; they hear things in such a different manner than I do.  It might not make the writing process easy, but it’s always crazy to have your brain cracked open in a different way when you work with other musicians who challenge you.

Any favorite Southern women?My mama!!!
. . . otherwise, does Blanche Devereax count? (editor’s note: yes.)
Any other Southern women or non-binary or trans Southerners making music that we should know about?
Eek – there are so many.  Especially in Florida where A Brilliant Lie is based.  I feel like the female musician community is crazy strong (and huge).  Off the top of my head – I definitely would have to give a shout out to Jayna in Glass Mansions (though I would be surprised if you didn’t know about them, haha).  They are one of the hardest-working bands this side of the Mississippi.  The hustle is real!  Ashley of Chasing Jonah (Jacksonville) is also a very unique talent, and better yet, she is always collaborating with great artists and providing new eye and ear candy to the masses.  There a tons more – I could go on forever.

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23-year old model-actress Nhya (Fields-)Cedon [1][2] (Brief Breasts) in Ballers [S2E9]

I hope to gain from this website the experienced needed to enhance my modeling career. My goals are to get out there be seen and make a difference. Being a model just doesnt give me a chance to be seen but it also gives me a feel of completion. knowing that my face my style and my voice will be seen and heard by many people one day gives me a chance to change my life and many others. i’ve tried modeling schools and other modeling internet sites and i  wasnt completely satisfied so im trusting that this on will be the last one i have to try! thank you,Nhya Cedon

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